← Matchups

Eastern Kentucky

· 1-2 · power -12.3 · #321
Our numberTAR -27.3 no book has priced this game

Tarleton State

· 3-0 · power +10.1 · #82
Our side
MoneylineTAR to win ours 95%
Projected score 14–42 EKU – TAR
2026-10-31 · 7:00 PM Tarleton Memorial Stadium · Stephenville, TX Conference game Early season

The books

No book has priced this game. Nothing to compare, and no ticket to build.

Series Eastern Kentucky lead 3–1 · 4 meetings since 2021
2025 unit ranks — last completed season, from games actually played
Run game edge Tarleton State Texans 104 ranks
Eastern Kentucky Colonels #192 rush offense Tarleton State Texans #88 run defense
Pass game edge Tarleton State Texans 229 ranks
Eastern Kentucky Colonels #253 pass offense Tarleton State Texans #24 pass defense
Run game edge Tarleton State Texans 118 ranks
Tarleton State Texans #64 rush offense Eastern Kentucky Colonels #182 run defense
Pass game even 43 ranks apart
Tarleton State Texans #11 pass offense Eastern Kentucky Colonels #54 pass defense
Eastern Kentucky Colonels Run-heavy · 64% run Ball-control Tarleton State Texans Balanced · 53% run Ball-control

Ranked by team-unit strength (rush & pass offense vs. run & pass defense) across all 265 D1 teams, not by individual players. Identity, tempo and unit strength are measured from the 2025 season.

The evidence 2025 production and power ratings · supporting the number above

Who carried each team in 2025
Eastern Kentucky Colonels
LB Cam Jessee 23 tkl · 0.5 sacks · 2.5 TFL #42 LB
DB Derek Taylor 24 tkl #137 DB
RB Brady Hensley 225 rush yds · 2 TD · 3 rec #62 RB
DB Jeffrey Kinley 19 tkl · 1 PD #266 DB
Tarleton State Texans
RB Tylan Hines 575 rush yds · 4 TD · 6 rec #3 RB
WR Marquis Willis 19 rec · 320 yds · 3 TD #11 WR
DB Fredd Adams 21 tkl · 5 PD #25 DB
P Charlie Mullen 7 punts · 44.7 yd avg #4 P

Top-rated players from last season, ranked within their position across D1. A grade measures what a player produced, and no 2026 game has been played yet — so this is who produced for these programs in 2025, not a claim about who is on the field this year.

Power breakdown
TeamPowerOffDefRank
Eastern Kentucky Colonels -12.3 -9.4 -2.9 #321
Tarleton State Texans +10.1 +7.9 +2.2 #82

Def is higher = better. The projection assumes a 2.4-pt home edge (0 at neutral sites).

Where the number comes from
Eastern Kentucky offense vs Tarleton State defense-11.6 pts
Tarleton State offense vs Eastern Kentucky defense+10.8 pts
Efficiency adjustment · EPA, success rate, explosiveness+1.2 pts
Power projection before adjustment+26.1
Travel · context onlyAway team travels 874 mi

The projection carries an efficiency adjustment — a residual from season-to-date EPA, success rate and explosiveness, which earned its place by walk-forward test (margin error 12.90 → 12.72 across seven held-out seasons).

Situational spots are shown for context, not baked in: travel, altitude and rest were tested against 6,000+ games and the power and efficiency ratings already account for them. Adding them again would double-count.